Although born and raised in France, Chamakh chose to play international football for Morocco, because he had Moroccan parents.[5] He made his national team debut in July 2003 and has played at three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, including the 2004 tournament in which Morocco finished runner-up. In August 2010, he captained the national team for the first time.[6]

Personal life

Chamakh was born in Tonneins, a small town near the Garonne River, to Moroccan parents, and was raised in the nearby commune of Aiguillon. His father, El Mostafa Chamakh, was a former footballer in Morocco and played for Difaâ Aïn Sbaâ in Casablanca.[7] In 1979, he left Morocco to locate more favorable living conditions and to find a better job.[8] After settling in France and finding work as a stonemason, the elder Chamakh brought his family over soon after.[9] Among Chamakh's family members include his younger brother Yassin who owns a café. Chamakh has stated that when he goes back home, he often waits tables to help out his brother.[9]

While pursuing his career as a professional footballer, Chamakh was equally adept off the field earning good grades in school. During his early years at Bordeaux, he began attending high school. He hoped to earn a Baccalauréat in accounting, which he later accomplished.[8] In addition to having a Baccalauréat, Chamakh is also very interested in politics and, in February 2010, voiced his support for the Democratic Movement (MoDem) political party ahead of the upcoming regional elections. In the 2010 regional elections, Chamakh was, surprisingly, listed as a candidate by the MoDem for the Girondedepartment in the Aquitaineregion.[10] The lead deputy of the party, Jean Lassalle, stated on the decision to name Chamakh to the ballot: "I want to gather all the forces of Aquitaine to sustain our region, and Marouane is one of those forces who Aquitaine needs."[11] Chamakh was listed as a non-eligible candidate on the ballot and Lasalle was accused of using Chamakh in order to garner votes from football supporters in the region.[12][13]

Career

Early career

Chamakh began his football career at the age of four playing for local club Nérac FC in the nearby commune of Nérac. While at Nérac, youth coaches at the club nicknamed him "Mr. George" after the former FIFA World Player of the YearGeorge Weah because Chamakh "used to score four or five goals in every game".[9] After six years at Nérac, Chamakh joined FC Marmandais. While in Marmande, he developed his physical skills and traits, growing as tall as 6 ft (1.83 m) and also earning his first regional selection to play for the Aquitaine regional team in the Coupe Nationale.[8][14]

Bordeaux

In 2000, Chamakh was pursued by several professional clubs that wanted to obtain his services. He drew interest from Lens, Toulouse, Lorient, and Bordeaux. Chamakh eventually decided to sign with Bordeaux due to the club's infrastructure and training facilities and also because of the close proximity to his family.[8] Upon his arrival, Chamakh was placed into the club's youth academy. For the 2001–02 season, he was promoted to the club's Championnat de France amateur 2 team in the fifth division. Chamakh was involved heavily in the campaign of the team, coached by Jean-Louis Garcia. He appeared in 17 matches and scored six goals as the team finished first in their group, thus earning promotion to the Championnat de France amateur.[15]

Following the season, Chamakh turned professional and signed a three-year contract with Bordeaux. He spent the first half of the 2002–03 campaign playing in the fourth division, but following the winter break, was called up to the senior team by manager Elie Baup. Chamakh made his professional debut on 19 January 2003 in the team's Coupe de la Ligue match against Metz. He appeared as a substitute and played 15 minutes in a 1–0 defeat.[16] Chamakh made his league debut three weeks later in a 2–0 home defeat to Bastia again appearing as a substitute.[17] On 20 May, he scored his first professional goal against Nice, netting the equalizing goal just a minute before injury time in a 1–1 draw.[18] Chamakh appeared in 14 games, always as a substitute, during the campaign. In the 2003–04 season, he was promoted to the senior team permanently by new manager Michel Pavon and made his first professional league start on 1 November 2003 in a 1–0 win over Marseille.[19] In the team's following match, Chamakh scored the opening goal in a 1–1 draw with Strasbourg just before halftime. However, mid-way through the second half, he received his first career red card after incurring a second yellow.[20] Upon returning from his one-game suspension, Chamakh developed into a regular starter for the club, scoring goals in consecutive matches against Metz and Montpellier.[21][22] He finished the league campaign with six goals in 25 matches. In the club's UEFA Cup campaign, Chamakh netted four times in eight appearances.

Chamakh signing autographs in 2005

In the 2004–05 season, Pavon decided to move Chamakh into the lead striker position and install ArgentineplaymakerJuan Pablo Francia as a support striker. The move was a success with Chamakh scoring ten league goals. He opened the campaign by scoring his first professional hat trick in a 5–1 victory over Nice.[23] In September 2004, Chamakh scored goals in back-to-back matches against Bastia and Derby de la Garonne rivals Toulouse.[24][25] He finished the campaign by scoring the opening goal in a 1–1 draw with Monaco.[26] Despite the positive individual season from Chamakh, Bordeaux finished the campaign in 15th place; its worst finish since ending the league campaign in 16th over a decade before. Pavon, due to heart problems, stepped down from his position and was replaced by Ricardo Gomes. Under Gomes, Chamakh struggled to meet the success of his previous season scoring only 12 league goals in 58 matches over the course of two seasons. Two of his notable performances during Gomes' reign included scoring a double in league matches against Metz and Nancy.[27] In the match against the former club, Chamakh scored both of his goals within a minute of each other. He was later ejected from the match after committing a red card offense.[28] Chamakh ended the 2006–07 Ligue 1 campaign by hoisting the Coupe de la Ligue trophy after featuring in the team's 1–0 victory over Lyon in the final match.[29] It was Chamakh's first major club honour.

Chamakh during a 2009 training session with Bordeaux.

Following the departure of Gomes, Bordeaux hired rookie manager Laurent Blanc ahead of the 2007–08 season. Chamakh has stated on several occasions that Blanc was an important figure in his development as a footballer.[9][30] However, when Blanc first arrived to the club, Chamakh struggled to earn meaningful minutes because Blanc preferred David Bellion, a new recruit. His playing time up front was further hampered by the arrival of striker Fernando Cavenaghi, who had a prolific season scoring 15 goals in only 23 appearances. Due to Cavenaghi's emergence, Chamakh was used as a target man and scored four goals, his lowest output since becoming a professional. In the 2008–09 season, Chamakh was relegated to appearing as a substitute for the first-half of the campaign. However, on 21 December 2008, Chamakh convinced Blanc to change his mind. With Bordeaux trailing 3–0 against Monaco, Chamakh appeared as a substitute and, within minutes on the field, scored a goal. Following a goal from Alou Diarra to make the match 3–2, Chamakh equalized three minutes from time and, two minutes later, Cavenaghi netted the game-winner to give Bordeaux a 4–3 victory.[31] Following the winter break, Blanc decided to use both Chamakh and Cavenaghi in the attack with influential playmaker Yoann Gourcuff acting in support. It was the former who developed a consistent partnership with Gourcuff, and Chamakh responded by scoring eight league goals in the second half of the season. On 30 May 2009, Bordeaux sealed their first league title since the 1998–99 season after defeating Caen 1–0 at the Stade Chaban Delmas.[32][33] Chamakh played the entire match. The club also won the Coupe de la Ligue, completing the league and league cup double.[34]

During the club's victory parade, with only one year left on his contract Chamakh declared that he would be staying at Bordeaux for the 2009–10 season, despite strong interest from Premier League club Arsenal.[35] Despite the statement, rumors of a move to Arsenal continued to surface with negotiations reportedly having been ongoing throughout the summer. On 3 August 2009, president Jean-Louis Triaud declared that Arsenal had sent a bid of €7 million for Chamakh and that he had rejected it, demanding that Arsenal improve its offer.[36] The following day, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger announced that he would not be offering a better deal and declared the possible transfer dead.[37] The announcement subsequently led Chamakh to confirm his intent to remain at Bordeaux for the 2009–10 season.[38] On 29 August, Chamakh reportedly snubbed a move to West Ham.[39] The club offered Bordeaux £18 million for the player and offered Chamakh a four-year contract worth £3 million a year. However, Chamakh remained firm on his stance, reiterating his commitment to Bordeaux.[40]

In his final season with Bordeaux, Chamakh was equally adept in both the league and the UEFA Champions League. He began the season claiming his fifth trophy on 25 July 2009 as Bordeaux won the 2009 Trophée des Champions in a 2–0 victory over Guingamp. Chamakh scored ten goals in league play and netted five in the Champions League, which included goals against Italian club Juventus and German club Bayern Munich in the group stage.[41][42][43] Bordeaux were only one of two clubs to finish the group-stage portion undefeated. In the knockout rounds, Chamakh scored a goal in Bordeaux's 2–1 victory over Greek club Olympiacos in the second leg of the team's UEFA Champions League opening knockout round match.[44] Bordeaux won the tie with a 3–1 aggregate scoreline to advance to the quarter-finals, where they faced league rivals Lyon. In the first leg, which Lyon won 3–1, Chamakh scored a vital away goal.[45] In the second leg, Chamakh converted another goal to get the scoreline 3–2 on aggregate. However, in the second half, Bordeaux were unable to score another as Lyon advanced to the semi-finals on the aggregate scoreline.[46] In Ligue 1, Chamakh appeared in all 38 matches for the first time in his career. Despite starting the campaign strong, Bordeaux fell out of the running for the league title in the spring and eventually finished the season in sixth place, failing to qualify for European competitionnext season.

Arsenal

On 21 May 2010, Chamakh completed his move to Arsenal on a free transfer after completing his contract with Bordeaux.[47][48] The transfer took effect on 1 July 2010.[49] He made his debut in a pre-season friendly against Barnet on 17 July, appearing as a substitute.[50] On 27 July, he scored his first pre-season goal for the club, converting a penalty in a 4–0 victory over Austrian club SC Neusiedl.[51] In the 2010 edition of the Emirates Cup, Chamakh scored on his home debut against Italian club Milan.[52] He made his Premier League debut on 15 August in the team's 1–1 draw with Liverpool. Chamakh contributed to the team's equalizing goal by heading a cross off the goal post, which then redirected off goalkeeper Pepe Reina and in to the back of the net, resulting in an own goal.

On 21 August 2010, Chamakh scored his first Premier League goal with a header against Blackpool. In the same match, he won a penalty when he was fouled by Ian Evatt, which Andrei Arshavin subsequently converted in a 6–0 win for Arsenal.[53] In his third start in four games, Chamakh scored the team's second goal against Bolton Wanderers in a 4–1 victory.[54] On 15 September, in his first UEFA Champions League match for the club, he scored the third goal in a 6–0 win against Portuguese club S.C. Braga.[55] Two weeks later, Chamakh scored his second Champions League goal for Arsenal against Serbian outfit FK Partizan. The goal was his seventh goal in his last eight Champions League matches.[56] Following the international break, Chamakh continued his solid form, scoring the winning goal in a 2–1 victory over Birmingham City.[57] Three days later, he scored his eighth goal in nine Champions League matches against Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk in a 5–1 rout.[58] On 10 November, Chamakh scored both goals in a midweek victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.[59] He scored the opening goal 37 seconds into play, which is the fastest league goal scored in the club's history.[60] The previous record was held by Thierry Henry, who scored a goal after 58 seconds for Arsenal against Reading on 22 October 2006.[61]

On 20 November, Chamakh scored a goal in a 3–2 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby.[62] A week later, he converted another goal, this time in a 4–2 win over Aston Villa.[63] Following the goal against Aston Villa, Chamakh went scoreless in the winter months often appearing as a substitute in a majority of the matches. In matches he did start, he was often substituted on early in the second half. On 15 February 2011, Chamakh admitted that he felt burnt out stating "By the start of January I felt that I had completely lost my edge".[64] The striker also admitted he needed some rest and wouldn't return to full form until March.[65] On 20 February, Chamakh played the entire match in Arsenal's 1–1 draw with Leyton Orient in the FA Cup.[66] It was the first time in nearly two months he had played the full 90 minutes in a match. On 2 March, in the replay against Leyton Orient, Chamakh scored his first goal since November in a 5–0 win.[67]

In the 2011–12 season, Chamakh made just 11 League appearences, most of which as a substitute, and scored only one goal in the 4–3 defeat against Blackburn Rovers.[68]

In qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Chamakh scored three goals. One of his goals during qualification occurred on 8 October 2010 against Tunisia. With Morocco needing a win to qualify for the World Cup, Chamakh opened the scoring in the third minute. However, the match finished 2–2, which resulted in the team failing to qualify for the competition. However, the draw did allow Morocco qualification for the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations. In the tournament, Morocco were eliminated in the group stage and departed the tournament without scoring a goal. In 2008, Chamakh was selected to participate in his third consecutive Africa Cup of Nations and was held scoreless in the competition as Morocco were again eliminated in the group stage. In 2009–2010, Chamakh appeared in only four matches and scored no goals as Morocco failed to qualify for both the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.